For those who know me personally, it will come as no surprise that I start this with the proclamation that I am a very private person. When I first founded YourCoach, the best and most difficult piece of advice I was given was to share the mission behind what we do, which of course, has my personal story at the heart of it. It took me years to get through an introduction and the ‘why’ behind YourCoach without having a lump in the back of my throat, often resulting in a couple of tears rolling down my face. That vulnerability was really hard to show and it still is. What I did learn, and what I say often, is that there is power in our stories and every year, in the month of October, I find it’s important to share mine.
My journey to health coaching started 10 years ago when I was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 37. I looked great, I felt great, my young family was thriving, my schedule was packed with activities and friends and there definitely wasn’t room in my life for this diagnosis.. After I found the lump in my breast through my sleep in the middle of the night, I felt for it again the next morning in the shower. It took me about a minute to find it again, the minute in which I felt much relief that it was all just a nightmare. After I did find it again, the nightmare became my reality. Two weeks later after multiple doctor visits, a mammogram and a biopsy, my cancer was confirmed and in that instant I became a cancer patient.
The next year was a blur of chemotherapy, a mastectomy, radiotherapy and several reconstructive surgeries. Very few people knew what I was going through.. I was very grateful for my fabulous wig and beautiful hats and for my family who respected my decision to keep my cancer journey private. I was very lucky to be treated at Antoni Van Leeuwenhoek cancer center in Amsterdam, where the patient was at the heart of the process. I was treated with empathy and respect and most importantly as a person – not just a patient number and a file. I was offered many things throughout my treatment – my insurance paid for a personal trainer when I decided I wanted to weight train while receiving chemo; I had a nurse come to the house to administer medication post-chemo so that I would recover stronger session-to-session; I was offered a therapist to talk to as much as I wanted to. One thing I was not offered was someone to help me navigate what my new life after treatment would look like. That part? That part I had to figure out for myself.
These days, when I do my intro to either prospects or investors – I can do it in 30 seconds. I breathe through my diagnosis, I make a point of reiterating that modern medicine, in the hands of my incredible doctors, saved my life and I focus on where health coaching has helped me in navigating my new life and the second chance I was given. The part that is often misinterpreted, and what people often walk away with, is that the health coaching services we offer through YourCoach are for oncology patients only, and that could not be farther from the truth.
After my treatment, I did not want to be identified as a ‘breast cancer patient’. I was and still am ‘me’. A different me, a stronger me, a me with a new outlook on life and what I want out of it, but essentially, just me. Go ahead, substitute a breast cancer patient with anyone else going through a life change – someone struggling with a chronic illness; someone who has people around them but is lonely; someone burn-out and anxious from everyday stresses; someone navigating work, life, family; the list goes on. This is the magic of health coaching. This is where our REAL health coaches come in and help individuals not only survive, but truly thrive – no matter what curveballs life throws at them.
This is what I chose to take away from my journey. I founded YourCoach after my life changed and health coaching is still helping me navigate my ever-evolving new life with all its ebbs and flows. I love our human-centered approach and I love the feedback we get from the humans we help and the humans who are helping them. So next time we have a conversation and you ask me who YourCoach health coaches can help? You know the answer – it’s the everyday human, during everyday human things.
And hey, it’s October – don’t forget to get that yearly mammogram and please, please, please – listen to your body – it’s a lot smarter than you realize..